Mountain View Electric Association’s mission is vital: to deliver safe, reliable, affordable, and responsible electricity to you — our members. That mission has never been more important as we face increasing wildfire risk across Colorado. Our state’s growing population, increasingly dry conditions, and suburban spread into wildland-urban areas has changed the conversation about, and the urgency for, proactive utility wildfire mitigation planning. Let’s take a look at MVEA’s efforts to reduce wildfire risk through strategic planning and system upgrades.
MVEA’s wildfire mitigation plan is comprehensive. It starts with maintaining and improving the electric system itself. We regularly patrol, inspect, and upgrade our infrastructure to ensure it meets or exceeds industry standards for safety and performance. This includes investing in system hardening, such as replacing poles and equipment with fire-resistant materials and installing devices that limit sparks and faults.
We are expanding our efforts on the ground by having eyes in the sky. Our drone inspection program allows us to safely and efficiently inspect hard-to-reach areas of our system, identify potential risks earlier, and to act before problems arise. This technology allows us to assess fire risk, prioritize projects, and allocate resources where they are needed most.
Vegetation management remains a critical part of our approach. Trees and vegetation growing too close to power lines can create fire hazards. We have a year-round program to trim trees and remove vegetation around our lines, poles, and equipment. These efforts reduce wildfire risk and improve the reliability of your electric service by minimizing outages caused by branches or trees.
We are also harnessing the power of cutting-edge technologies. We are currently building a new Advanced Distribution Management System (ADMS) with Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) technologies that will give us better situational awareness, improve operational efficiency, and reduce outage response times. These tools are cornerstones of our evolving smart grid strategy, helping us deliver even greater reliability and prepare for an increasingly dynamic energy landscape — all while enhancing our ability to monitor and respond to wildfire risks in real time.
To help offset the cost of our wildfire mitigation strategy and system upgrades, last year MVEA was awarded $771,000 from the U.S. Department of Energy. These funds are being used to enhance the resiliency of our infrastructure and improve fault detection to ensure high reliability during extreme weather events.
As we look ahead, please know that MVEA remains vigilant and proactive in addressing wildfire risks. Everything we do is rooted in reliability and our promise to follow through on the commitments we make to our members. For more details about our wildfire mitigation plan and for tips to reduce wildfire risk on your property, visit www.mvea.coop/wildfire-mitigation.
Ruth Marks is the General Manager of Mountain View Electric Association. MVEA’s mission is to provide our members safe, reliable, affordable, and responsible electric service and access to broadband services.
